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Have
the Best Weaning Moments with Your Little One
The first few months will be an exciting, wonderful time for you
and your baby. Isn’t it amazing how fast babies grow? This
is an important time nutritionally. As loving parents, you will
have questions on what to expect and how to give the best to your
precious one. We are happy to share many practical tips, and information
to help make feeding your baby more fun!
 Only
the Best for Your Baby
Breast milk is the best nourishment your newborn baby needs.
Breast milk provides all the nutrients your little one requires
for optimal physical and mental development. Therefore the World
Heath Organization (WHO) recommends exclusive breast feeding for
the first six months
When is my
Baby ready for Solid Foods?
Every baby follows his or her own pace of development.
At this stage, though, your baby is probably building her muscles
and squirming with energy. All this activity comes with increased
nutritional needs! By about six months of age, a baby’s weight
doubles. Then, breast milk alone is not able to provide all the
nutrients baby needs and it is time to supplement her growing nutritional
needs with gentle first foods.
5 Signs to suggest that your
baby is ready for her first solid food:
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Sits with support and has a good head control. |
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Has almost doubled her birth weight. |
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Shows an interest while you are eating or preparing food. |
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Frequently puts objects into her mouth. |
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Can move a dab of thinned baby food to the back of her tongue
and swallow it. |
Consult your healthcare practitioner if you have
questions or want more specific advice!
Baby
Steps with Solid Foods
When Baby is ready, providing a variety of gentle first foods will
introduce her to new flavours and textures, support her nutritional
needs, and begin to help develop her eating skills.
Start with a single-grain infant cereal like rice cereal, which
is a good first food choice because it is especially easy to digest
with a low allergy potential.
Tips on first foods
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Try new foods one at a time,
with a few days in-between, so Baby has time to get used to
her new tastes. |
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In the first days, start by feeding milk to take the
edge off baby’s hunger, then complete the feed
with a new food. |
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A single baby spoon or two of any solid is enough for the
first taste. Remember, babies have tiny tummies at this
stage. |
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Babies can taste very subtle amounts of sweetness and don’t
need added sugars. Added salt should also be avoided
– it’s too much for Baby’s body to cope with.
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Finding time when she’s in the right mood
for new foods can be tricky. Lunchtime is a good place to start
so you don’t have to disrupt her morning and evening routines.
Beginning
with Infant Cereal
A single-grain infant cereal is a good initial step in adjusting
to first foods. Though your baby’s tummy is small,
his nutrient and energy requirements are high. Infant cereals are
gentle first foods to complement your infant’s nutritional
needs since they’re energy-dense as well as nutrient-rich.
Some cereals, however, may be easier for your baby to digest
than others. Infant cereals that contain carbohydrates
that are broken down into smaller pieces (as with the Nestlé
CHE tm process) are specially designed to be easy on Baby’s
developing digestive system.
 Laying
a Healthy Foundation
Good nutrition at each stage of development ensures that
your baby grows and develops optimally. Introducing the right foods
in the right amount and right textures at each stage of baby’s
development will ensure that nutritional needs are met and baby
learns to enjoy food as well. Checkout www.nestlebaby.com.sg
for more yummy recipes, creative menus and information on baby nutrition
and development.
Contributed by :
www.nestlebaby.com.sg
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